CFDA Awards: Ultimate Fashion Moments” Special Sneak Peek: See How the Council Is Fighting for Diversity in Fashion

Protests over the death of George Floyd and larger, deeply-rooted issues like racism and social injustice have placed a renewed focus on diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Building lasting change. Protests over the death of George Floyd and larger, more deeply-rooted issues like racism and social injustice have placed a renewed focus on diversity and inclusion in the workplace. As E! News style correspondent Zanna Roberts Rassi put it, “Transformative discussions are going on everywhere.” This, of course, includes the fashion industry. And tonight on E!‘s Cfda Awards: Ultimate Fashion Moments special, Rassi and celebrity stylist Brad Goreski will speak to Cfda board member and designer Carly Cushnie about what the Council is doing to aid in the fight for racial equality. “The Council of Fashion Designers of America have discussed.

News style correspondent Zanna Roberts Rassi put it, “Transformative discussions are going on everywhere.”

This, of course, includes the fashion industry. And CFDA Awards: Ultimate Fashion Moments special, Rassi and celebrity stylist Brad Goreski will speak to CFDA board member and designer Carly Cushnie about what the Council is doing to aid in the fight for racial equality.

“The Council of Fashion Designers of America have discussed systemic changes that the fashion world can create,” Brad says in this sneak-peek.

More specifically, per statement from CFDA Chairman Tom Ford, the Council “will create an in-house employment program specifically charged with placing Black talent in all sectors of the fashion business to help achieve a racially balanced industry.”

So the CFDA held a board meeting which they said  “Given the deplorable acts of racism and violence that we have seen play out in our country over this past week, our response as an organization was first and foremost on our minds and in our hearts”.

Black people in this country are reeling from years of injustice stemming from institutional constructs such as slavery, segregation, mass incarceration, police brutality and economic and voter suppression. The Black community is experiencing anger and frustration on top of the effects of the global pandemic that has hit communities of color the hardest.

Having a clear voice and speaking out against racial injustice, bigotry and hatred is the first step, but this is not enough. This is a deeply disturbing moment that speaks to us all. Our world is in deep pain. Our industry is in pain and it is not enough to simply say that we stand in solidarity with those who are discriminated against. We must do something.

As the clip continues, with Carly—who joined the CFDA Board just last year—telling Zanna and Brad that she was glad to see the Council “really take action immediately.”

“There’s been a lot of statements made from a lot of companies, a lot of brands, a lot of organizations and it’s important to stand with the Black community at this time,” Carly says. “But even more so, it’s really about taking action, taking steps.”

She adds, “So I think what they’ve started to do in terms of creating an employment program specifically aimed at sourcing Black talent and placing Black talent through all sectors of the industry, I think is just really crucial.”

Tune into CFDA Awards: Ultimate Fashion Moments tonight at 11 p.m., only on E!

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